Vanishing Shadows
by Ballgurl97
Summary: A Team Snagem traitor and a wanted young girl must team up in order to not only to stop the uprise of Cipher and their growing collection of Shadow Pokemon, but to unlock the secrets of their pasts and who they really are. Based off the Pokemon Colosseum game with Wes, Rui, Espeon, and Umbreon.
1. Prologue

All was quiet in the still darkness of the Everett Mansion, not a hair out of place. The house was cradled in darkness, the ever gentle breeze on the outside giving the house a unique peacefulness to it. It was almost like an untouched pond, still and at peace.

A pebble was thrown into the pond, shaking the now uneasy water. Footsteps, small but not unheard, echoed through the many halls of the Everett Mansion. They carried a gentle _pat, pat_ throughout the house, followed by the disturbing _creak!_ of the old door, an outcast in the peaceful serenity of the mansion.

A small, skinny young boy pushed a stool up to the bathroom counter, causing a deafening screeching sound. He was the source of all this noise.

He used his pudgy hands to place himself atop a stool, little golden eyes staring at the mirror in front of him. For his age, it was weird for him to stare at himself in the mirror, poke his cheeks, examine his eyes, fix his hair, but it was normal to him. It was always something he did, always something he wanted to do. Father walked out two years after he was born, making him feel imperfect, so he looked at himself in the mirror, trying to find the cracks and the 'bad stuff'.

"Wesley, what are you doing up?"

The boy spun himself around in the stool, facing the open door where a young man, similar in appearance to the boy, stared at him with sleepy golden eyes. He must not have heard his footsteps, or he would've been aware of the man coming his way.

Wesley spared another glance at himself in the mirror before meeting the man's golden eyes. "I couldn't sleep."

The young man sighed, rubbing a single eye as he walked up behind the child, patting him on the head. "Baby, you need to stop worrying yourself like this." He said lazily.

Wesley scowled, swatting at the man's head. "Don't call me that!"

The man chuckled lightly, placing an arm on Wesley's tiny shoulder and offering him a warm smile. "You want to go talk about it?" He asked, quickly recieving a nod from the little boy. "Alright, let's go to the den. I don't want to talk in the bathroom."

Wesley giggled, holding out his arms and allowing the man to pick him up and place him back on the ground. Wesley took the man's larger hand into his small one, grasping it tightly as they exited the bathroom.

They walked silently down the hallway, the _pat, pat_ of their footsteps the only thing keeping the mansion from silence. Wesley looked up at the man with a frown, brows furrowed.

"Nate?"

"Hmm?" The man, Nate, hummed, his eyes never wavering.

"Did Father leave because of me?"

Nate sighed, continuing to walk down the hallway without looking at his brother or answering. Wesley was sure he wasn't going to answer, until he heard Nate clear his throat, the young man's hand tightening a tad around Wesley's.

"There's something more we need to talk about."

oOoOo

_Thirteen Years Later_

oOoOo

Shuffling of feet and small bits of conversation were the only noises that occupied the Snagem Hideout. In the far corner of a room a tall, muscular man stood watch, arms crossed and crimson eyes observant. He had an unnaturally long moustache and set of eyebrows and a tight jaw. He wore a sleevless, red open-shirt vest, purple armbraces, tight brown pants and boots. The grunts around him were dressed in colors of a matching red and brown.

"Gonzap, sir!"

The no nonsense-esque man glanced to the side, looking the frantic grunt up and down before narrowing his eyes.

"What is it?" He snapped, already annoyed one had the nerve to disturb the perfect peace he had acquired, every grunt in the room stopping their work and looking his way.

"The guards on the outside, they've all been knocked out!" The upset grunt cried, waving his hands around his body in a frantic motion. "There's been a break in!"

"A _what?_"

_BOOM!_

The whole building shook, grunts covering their heads and falling to their knees in panic. Gonzap narrowed his crimson eyes, just about ready to-

His eyes widened, shock enveloping his features.

"The snag machine!" He cried more to himself than the grunts, who quickly recovered from the quake as they too became worried. "Go! Move out!"

With no hesitation, all of the grunts followed after the lead of Gonzap, running down the halls of the hideout and to the front doors. The guards on the inside of the doors were clearly surprised to see their leader and several others running their way, but took the hint and proceeded to open the doors.

Gonzap and the others made it outside in time to see a blue-coated young man and a black, fox-like creature running full speed across the Eclo Canyon.

Gonzap growled, immediately recognizing the boy. "After him! Don't let him get away!"

The Snagem group ran as fast as they could after the man in the blue-coat, but to no avail, lost him as he and the creature jumped into an oversized motorcycle, taking off and leaving a trail of dust in their wake.

Gonzap stopped the chase, struggling to catch his breath as his eyes narrowed at the ever disappearing motorcycle. "You traitor!" He yelled through clenched teeth, only to be answered with another _BOOM!_ as the hideout behind him exploded.

The young man on the motorcycle grinned mischeviously, satisfaction sending chills down his spine as he heard the explosion. He'd shown The Boss this time.

The man pushed up his silver goggles, revealing bright golden eyes. His silver hair blew fiercly in the wind behind him, a single white line across his nose and cheeks.

As his motorcycle reached the border of Eclo Canyon, the young man gave one last hearty chuckle, looking over his shoulder at the smoke that had come from the explosion.

"Wes wins this time, Boss."

* * *

**So that was fun. Hope no one's too confused. The second half of this is, of course, the events that take place in the start of the game. The first half, however, will be explained as the story progresses! Hope you guys liked this, please leave a review :3. It was nice to start a new story that didn't actually have pokemon as the main characters, not so boring anymore. This chapter was short, but they should get longer the more into the story it gets. Thanks, and see you soon!**


	2. On Your Own

The rough growl of the advanced motorcycle's engine ceased as soon as Wes turned the key. He had stopped at what seemed to be the only rest stop in Eclo Canyon: Peak's Diner. It was a small restaurant, brown and rusty looking on the outside with very few vehicles occupying it's parking lot. There were spare, junkyard pieces of cars and motorcycles sprawled out beside the entrance to the building, a sign at the door swinging fiercely in the wind, barely readable.

It was the first time Wes had ever wandered into Eclo Canyon, besides the Snagem Hideout, and he was lucky to have found a place, even in this condition. He would need to ask for directions to the next city so he could get out of the sandy wasteland.

Wes sighed, pulling the handle on the storage compartment of his bike, a soft _click!_ reaching his ears. He stared at the metal arm inside with shadowed, golden eyes, touching it tenderly with calloused fingers. Now that he thought about it, this was the first time he'd been by _himself. _He was eighteen and not once in his life had he ever been so alone. Now that he had escaped Team Snagem, more importantly, Gonzap, and taken their most prized position in the Snag Machine, what was he to do now? He had no interest in stealing anymore Pokemon from their helpless trainers, so what was the point in having it? To show Gonzap and the others up?

The young man shook his head, slamming the compartment door shut with unnecessary force. The pokemon in the side car beside him jumped in surprise, the darker one chirping an ungrateful _"Bre!"_

"Sorry, Amber," Wes apologized to his umbreon, patting her on her head. Loyal red eyes stared back at him, nodding in acceptance of his apology. Wes smiled absentmindedly at her before climbing out of his bike, landing gracefully on the ground. Amber made a move to follow, but was stopped when he held his hand up to her. "No, you stay here and guard the Snag Machine, I'll only be gone for a few minutes."

The dark type snorted, but honored his request to stand guard over the motorcycle, seating herself next to the quiet espeon she shared the side car with.

"Good girl, no need to worry about me!" Wes reassured, waving as he spun on his heels and began approaching the entrance of the restraunt.

Wes was stopped in his tracks when he was only five feet away from the steps that lead up to the door, two suspicious looking men walking past him and paying him no attention, engrossed in their current conversation.

"Fwaah! We sure pigged out, eh?" One of the men asked, hair resembling a wild fire, sunglasses blocking his eyes from view. "I love chowing down after a job! It adds to the flavor, I swear." The man, who Wes officially dubbed Magma Head, climbed into the passenger seat while his friend walked around the back of the car

"Heheheh, yeah," The other guy laughed, blonde hair sticking out from under a navy hat and eyes blocked by sunglasses similar to his partners, but with bright red lenses. "And we bagged ourselves a great big catch, too."

Red eyes climbed into the driver's seat, fiddling in his pocket for what Wes guessed could only be the keys.

"Boss'll be sure to fix us up with big rewards, too," Magma Head proclaimed, earning a laugh from his partner, who had found the key and placed it in the ignition. "Heheheh, it doesn't get any better than this!"

With that final note, the two suspicious men drove off, their hysterical laughter leaving an echo in the dust behind them. Wes cocked a brow at the slowly disappearing car, shrugging his shoulder before walking up the ramp to the shabby restraunt.

A waft of warm air, along with the aroma of early morning coffee and firewood hit Wes. The restaurant was small on the inside, but much different than what he had expected judging from the outside. It wasn't too plain and not too flashy, with dull blue and yellow tiled floors and silver walls, a counter and bar, about three booths, and a big, flatscreen TV in the middle.

The silver-haired young man grinned, even though slightly, as he walked and sat at the bar next to a man wearing a magenta sweatshirt currently in a conversation with the tall, burly man behind the counter, a single hand clasped around the handle of a mug with a chip at the top. The man behind the counter, a red-head with thick facial hair and a green bandana, excused himself from the conversation once he noticed Wes, making his way toward him.

Gold eyes met gentle, aged brown, a toothy grin on the worker's face. "What can I do for you, son?" He asked with a deep, gruff voice. Wes took a moment to read his name tag: Nathaniel.

"Just a water, please," Wes requested, "and do you have any poke snacks?"

Nathaniel nodded, smile still plastered to his face. "Sure do."

"I'll have two packs, please," The young man said, thanking the man before he hurried off to fix the order.

Wes's eyes found the TV, bright colors meeting his line of vision. A brunette woman in a teal sweater stood in front of a picture of a large building, smoke covering the whole of the picture and making it seemingly impossible to identify. A natural habit, Wes squinted his eyes in an attempt to better see the building. His breath caught in his throat once he recognized the building.

The Snagem Hideout.

Wes was now so interested in the broadcast that he hadn't noticed Nathaniel place the water and packages of poke snacks on the counter next to him until the man tapped a beefy finger against his shoulder. Wes had so quickly fumbled through his pocket for the money he almost looked like he'd lost his mind. Once he'd handed off the correct amount of money to the man and placed his wallet back in the safety of his pocket, he turned his attention back to the reporter on screen.

While the vision on screen was stunning, the audio sounded cracked and like static, the woman barely understandable.

"Authorities have made a stunning announcement on the mysterious building that exploded in Eclo Canyon," The petite woman announced, not missing a beat, "It was Team Snagem's hideout."

Wes's suspicious were confirmed, a groan threatening to escape his throat. They didn't know about him, did they? Surely they wouldn't find evidence of his being there and track him down for questioning.

"Team Snagem is a gang of Pokemon abductors who have already been marked for arrest," The reporter continued, "the Hideout was discovered only as a result of the explosion. By the time the police arrived, the ruined building had already been abandoned. The cause of the explosion is under investigation. It should become apparent eventually."

Wes sighed inwardly, relaxing in his seat and taking a sip of his water, satisfying his dry throat.

"Team Snagem, what a bunch of heartless crooks," The man beside Wes remarked, shaking his head in shame, "They rip off Pokemon from trainers wihout any hesitation. I hear they use something called a snag ball to catch Pokemon from their rightful trainer in battle." His emerald eyes shifted to Wes, making him instantly uneasy. "I'm guessing you're a trainer, you'd best be careful."

Wes's jaw clenched, lip twitching nervously. Although the man hadn't known, those words pained Wes to hear. He had been one of those heartless crooks once.

Wes nodded his head, golden eyes locked on emerald. "Will do."

Nathaniel came to the young man's rescue, clearing his throat and catching both mens' attention. His calm, brown eyes met Wes with much less intensity. "I don't see you around these parts much, so I can only guess you're new around here. Don't let your guard down around anyone suspicious, you hear?" He warned.

After nodding in response to the man, Wes was beginning to feel uncomfortable being in the small restauraunt, his throat clenching and the room becoming much hotter. He knew he didn't want to stick around much longer, and desperately seeked the outside.

Offering Nathaniel an appreciative smile, Wes passed over the now empty glass and picked up the two small packages of poke snacks, discarding them in his coat pocket. "Thanks for the water," Wes said, "it's about time for me to hit the road again. You two have a nice day."

The smiling red-head nodded, "Come back anytime, and be careful!"

Wes nodded a quick goodbye to the man and the guy at the bar before exiting the diner. He had so much on his mind right now. Only yesterday he had been Wes of Team Snagem, a crook and a theif. Today he was a new man, on his own, ready to shape his future better than his past had been. But how would he do that?

"Yo! Wait!" A gruff voice called from inside the diner, making it's way closer to him, "Wait up!"

Wes stopped in his tracks, one foot on the ramp of the diner and one on the sandy ground below. Looking over his shoulder, he met the purple eyes of a man rushing out of the entrance, hurrying to stand beside Wes.

The man's lavender hair reminded Wes of his espeon's coat, but it was styled in a backwards fashion, sticking out behind him. He had thick sideburns and eyebrows, and wore a brown rider's suit. His purple eyes were hard but kind, and he wore a confident smile on his face.

The man stuck a hand out to Wes, who hesitantly accepted it. "Hey, my name's Willie," The pink-haired man announced, shaking Wes's hand before letting go and dropping his own hand to his side.

"Wes," He introduced himself.

"Nice to meet you, Wes!" Willie exclaimed, his smile growing tighter. Wes frowned, not used to all the smiles and kind gestures. Back with the Snagem grunts, he only received heated glares and barking commands.

Willie eyed the pokeballs on Wes's belt, although unaware that they were currently empty and barely ever used. "You a trainer?"

Wes nodded.

"Hmm...interesting," Willie thought aloud, arms crossed. "After getting a good look at you, I feel this urge to battle you. It's like I'm compelled to." Willie looked up, meeting Wes's golden gaze. "Anyway I look at it, it's obvious that you're no ordinary Joe...So, what do you say? Let's you and me have a quick battle!"

Wes smirked, never one to turn down a battle. "Alright!"

"Yeahah!" Willie cheered, pumping his fist into the air. "That's the spirit! Alright, alright. Over here, this way!"

Willie led Wes to an open space in front of the restauraunt where they could battle, easily as large as a real pokemon field. Wes, looking at his motorcycle, spotted his two pokemon waiting loyally for him. He whistled, calling them to his side, to which they hastily complied.

Willie eyed the espeon and umbreon curiously, scratching his stubly chin in thought. "Double battle, huh?" The rider inquired, raising a single brow. "Alrighty, then! Come on out guys!"

The young man stipped two pokeballs from his belts, clicking both and releasing two identical pokemon onto the field before him. Both were striped brown and white with a dark mask around their eyes like a raccoon: zigzagoon.

Although they were cute and fluffy, Wes knew the zigzagoon would still be worthy opponents. Seeing the scene before them, the two instantly recognized the setting and arranged their battled stance, eyes shooting glares at their opponents.

Wes's espeon and umbreon approached their positions on the field, purple and red eyes starring daggers into the black orbs of the zigzagoon.

"First move's yours!" Willie announced.

Wes nodded. First moves were always tricky, as they were expected and the outcome of a hit landing was unlikely. A physical attack would do no good, because it would, again, be expected, and easily dodged. A non-physical attack would provide a better chance.

Wes eyed the lavender fox-esque creature to his right, the pokemon's stance strong but cautious.

"Cyrus, confusion!"

Cheering a battle cry, the espeon wasted no time in sending the telepathic attack towards the male zigzagoon. The attack landed, hitting so fast the zigzagoon didn't even have time to _think_ about dodging, his body sent flying across the field.

"Amber, bite!"

The dark type moved as swiftly as her counterpart, taking the left leg of the female zigzagoon into her mouth and chomping down, earning a cry from her opponent.

"Sand-attack!" Willie ordered.

The normal type growled, swatting at the ground and throwing sand into the umbreon's crimson eyes. Amber cried in pain, releasing herself from Harley's leg and rubbing furiously at her eyes.

Willie smirked. "Now! Harley, headbutt! Duke, pin missile!"

Wes was quick to act. "Dodge, then switch and use bite and return!"

Amber did as instructed, switching her partner and sinking her teeth into the male zigzagoon's leg, weaking him by the second. Cyrus barely got away from the pin missile, his side grazed by a few shots but overall fine. The espeon used an unseen force on Harley, knocking her off her feet and sending her into her partner's side.

The two went tumbling sideways in a blur of white and brown, coming to a stop to reveal the now fainted pokemon. The quick, yet overwhelming, battle had taken it's toll on them.

"Harley! Duke!" Willie cried, running over to his weakened Pokemon. Crouching down beside them, he saw that they would be fine until he made a visit to a nearby Pokemon Center. Thanking his two faithful partners, he returned them to the safety of their pokeballs.

The rider stood back up, clearing his throat before turning to face Wes, with his espeon and umbreon standing on either side of him, loyal as two bodyguards would be to their prince.

"Good match," Willie congratulated, stuffing his hands in his pockets and making his way to Wes's side.

Wes nodded, "You too." He gently patted both of his pokemon on the head, giving them each small words of praise.

Willie grinned, glad to see a another trainer who treated his pokemon with respect.

"I guess I should be going now," Willie announced, patting the pokeballs on his belt, "need to get these two to a Pokemon Center."

The golden eyed man nodded once again before looking over his shoulder. "I should too-" He paused, looking back at Willie and meeting his eyes, "-know any place a guy like me could go? Somewhere I can find a new start."

Willie frowned, looking up at nowhere in particular and tapping a pokeball with his fingers in thought. Suddenly, an idea came to his mind, and he looked at Wes with a smiling face. "Phenac City! My sister lives there, it's a few miles west of here, just keep that way and you won't miss it."

Wes offered a small, appreciative smile. "Thanks, Willie," He chuckled, holding out a hand, "And good luck."

The younger man laughed, "It's no problem," He responded, grabbing Wes's hand and giving him a firm handshake.

After a brief parting and words of luck to each other, the two new friends seperated, Willie driving back to his hometown nearby, and Wes preparing to leave for Phenac City.

Amber and Cyrus sat in the side car of the motorcycle, their few injuries healed with oran berries Wes had left over in his storage. Cyrus, the lazy one he was despite being a quickster in battle, was sprawled across the car soundly alseep. His companion Amber had her keen crimson eyes locked on her trainer, leaning against the motorcycle. He was her master, and should would do anything to protect him, and she knew he'd do the same.

Wes was staring blankly in the direction he knew the Snagem Hideout sat abandoned, covered in smoke with investigators surrounding every inch of the place.

He had finally escaped, escaped the treachory that was Team Snagem. He did feel the smallest of guilt, though. He was a traitor now, a traitor to the people who had taken him in over ten years ago. They had raised him and brought him up in the world, taught him like a teacher would and even let him keep the two injured eevees he had brought home when he was eleven. They were like family, like brothers. That's even what they called each other, and he was their brother, Brother Wes.

Wes sighed, shaking his head and finding and new interest in his boots. He was ashamed, Gonzap's parting yells of _"Traitor!"_ ringing in his ears like a broken tune. It was for the better, though, it was something he needed to do. He'd rather be a traitor than a thief, a bully who stole Pokemon from helpless children just because it was his _job_.

The young man peered over his shoulder, meeting his loyal umbreon's eyes, her head tilting to the side as if asking what he wanted.

Wes chuckled, climbing into the motorcycle with ease and patting her head, scratching behind her ear. "Good girl."

He was on his own this time, and it was time to make a better image for himself. He was no longer Brother Wes, or the Team Snagem mutt, he was his own person. And this time he would choose his own life.

He put the key in the ignition of the motorcycle, drowning out the sounds of the engine and staring ahead. Somewhere, Phenac City was waiting for him, and he wasn't entirely sure he was ready.

Looking back to his left, his golden eyes landed on his umbreon and now awake espeon, both looking at him expectantly. Cyrus offered his trainer what looked like an encouraging smile, and Amber gave an enthusiastic _"Bre!"_

Wes chuckled, suddenly realizing that he really wasn't all that alone. He had Cyrus and Amber, his two loyal pokemon by his side no matter what. They would be with him every step of the way, to help discover his new path in life.

Giving one last look to his partners, and the storage compartment where the Snag Machine lay, Wes drove off for Phenac City, leaving the diner where he'd made his first start behind him.

**oOoOo**

**What a cheesy ending, guh. I aplogize for this being a day late, didn't have my laptop yesterday so had to finish the chapter tonight, and to make it easier my new update day will be Thursday from now on. Hope this chapter wasn't too boring, I was trying to get the point across that Wes has been dependent on someone for all his life, and now has to cope with being on his own. Yes, the battle was short and quick, but for me, it was the same way in the game, so that's how I wrote it. No flashback this chapter, but they'll be back later and more will be revealed then! Also, sorry for no Rui this chapter (although she _was kinda _in it, if you know what I mean), promise she'll be here next chapter! I might even make the next chapter update early just so I can have her in the story. Thanks for reading, and please review!**


	3. She Who Saw More

Phenac city was, to put it simply, a _beautiful_ city. From the peaceful streams of water to the tall palm trees, it was a magnificent sight. It had a nice feel too it that would just send shivers down your back. It was fenced in from the Orre Desert, adding to it's peaceful atmosphere.

Wes stared at it in awe for a few minutes before getting off his motorcycle, admiring the sight. Being cooped up in Snagem for so long, he forget what the rest of the world looked like, grey walls and smokey air clogging his memory.

Wes whistled to his pokemon, their ears perking up instantly. "Come on, guys."

Amber and Cyrus, eager to follow their friend into the new city, hopped out of the motorcycle and walked on either side of him as always. Wes whistled as he approached the gate to Phenac City, hands stuffed in his pockets.

What he saw at the entrance, though, stopped him completely in his steps.

Two _deathly_ familiar men stood blocking the entrance, one with fire-like hair and the other with his back turned wearing a strange hat.

Magma Head and Red Eyes, the two guys he had seen back at Peak's Diner.

They both stood carrying opposite ends of an oversized sack, arms shaking violently in a desperate attempt to hold the squirming bag up.

Wait. Was the bag..._moving?_

Wes's eyes widened, disbelief written across his face. No, surely they didn't have a moving bag, that was absurd. Maybe he was just seeing things, and it was actually the two men making all the movement.

"Trudly, what are you doing?" Magma Head inquired, looking at his partner with squinted eyes. "Get a grip, man!"

"Yea, you say that, Folly, but this-" Trudly caught his breath, looking side to side before continuing, voice dropped to a low whisper, "-she won't stop squirming! Makes it tough to hold on."

Follys jaw clenched, teeth grinding together noisely as he looked back at the back. "Settle down in there!" He whispered vehemently, "Be quite for a little while longer or I'll break your jaw!"

Wes flinched, shocked at what he was hearing. There was someone in the bag, and he didn't even want to think of what they were going to do to them. He looked down at Amber, the umbreon's ears flat against her skull and eyes narrowed dangerously at the duo.

"Amber, secret power on the ground next to them."

The umbreon growled, opening her mouth and revealing a green orb of energy. Folly's eyes widened at the sight, causing Trudly to turn around and react similarly. Before the two had time to think, a green blur exploded on the ground next to them, causing them to drop the bag from their hands. The sac hit the ground with a loud thud, a muffled cry heard from the impact.

The two shady looking thugs looked in Wes's direction, their eyes surely narrowed under the shades of their sunglasses.

"Hand over the bag," Wes ordered, his own eyes narrowed, "Or Amber here will give you another surprise, and she won't miss this time."

Folly, his temper already on a loose string, clenched his fist. "Who do you think you are getting in our way?" Before Wes could respond, Folly had pulled a pokeball from his belt and released the creature inside.

Wes couldn't resist the urge to laugh at the creature. With purple fur and yellow markings, it was obvious from sight this Pokemon was inexperience.

"A whismur?" Wes asked, chuckling. "I'll make this easier for us, then. Cyrus, use confusion."

Cyrus, with ease, knocked the whismur out of consciousness with one use of his telepathic moves. It was sad, really. The whismur hadn't even been out of his pokeball for ten seconds.

Folly blinked in shock before growling and hastily returning the fainted Pokemon to it's pokeball. His gaze met Wes's in an instant, anger bubbling up inside him at the young man's cocky smirk. "Oh, so you think you're some bigshot because you beat my Whismur so easily, huh?" The thug growled. "But if you think we're handing over the bag so easily, then you're sorely mistaken-"

Folly froze, shoulders stiffening and eyebrows rising in surprise. "W-wait a second...I know you!" Folly shouted, pointing a finger at Wes who also froze in shock. "You're the Snagem-"

"What's going on here?!"

The three men turned to meet the owner of the voice, revealing a man with shaggy purple hair and a white coat shielding the top of his dark red pants, a purple pokemon floating in the air beside his head. A worried woman clothed in pink and a jogger in blue stood behind him, a safe distance away from the trio.

Trudly punched his dumbfounded partner on the shoulder, abandoning his guard by the bag. "Let's get out of here, man!"

Folly nodded, turning and running with Trudly back to the exit, making their way swiftly past Wes with surprising speed.

Folly looked over his shoulder at Wes, shouting: "Don't get all happy just on account of winning this once. The next time we meet, I'll trash you, your Pokemon, and all!"

"Gligar, after them!" The purple-haired man ordered his purple pokemon, both running after the thugs in a desperate attempt to catch them.

Wes sighed, thankful that they were gone but disappointed they had gotten away. Turning back around, his golden eyes landed on the bag, which was surprisingly still compared to earlier. Which was probably logical, the thud that the bag made from falling to the ground wasn't such a pretty noise.

Making his way over to the bag, he crouched down and examined the knot. It was tight, he noted, more than likely to keep the person inside from escaping. Shaky hands grabbed on the ends of the knot, burning the tips of his fingers as he worked his way through. Once at the final knot, he took a deep breath before opening the ends of the bag, about to open it a bit furth-

Whack!

With a sharp pain in his jaw, Wes was thrown back on his bottom, teeth clenched and eyes squeezed shut as he cradled his throbbing jaw in his hand.

He heard the nearby woman, who was for whatever reason, still there and doing nothing, gasp and his two pokemon growl in defense.

"Where am I?!" A feminine voice demanded, Wes hearing a foot stomp down on the ground. "Tell me right now where I am and who you are! Or I'll break your neck this time!"

Wes opened his eyes slowly, a blur of colors obscuring his vision. As it cleared, he could make out a girl with auburn hair pulled back in a short pigtails and bright blue eyes shaded by freckles and pale skin. She had a bloodied lip and scratches lining her arms and face. She was wearing a bright blue jacket over a purple tank top, and a white skirt that went a little above her knees with bright pink boots. Wes almost missed the black choker necklace with the crescent moon pendant around her neck.

Her brows furrowed, eyes narrowing as she took a step forward. "I'll give you five more seconds to answer me!" She threatened, her voice holding truth.

Wes held back the urge to roll his eyes, narrowing them at her instead. "Take a look around, does this look like a place someone would take a kidnapped girl?"

Raising a single brow, the girl cautiously took a step back and peered over her shoulder. Her face flushed once she realized she was in a city, with stoned walls and fountains with clear water. She chuckled nervously to herself before looking back at the guy she had kicked in the jaw, his golden eyes staring daggers at her. "I guess you're right about that," She said. "But how do I know if I can trust you, then?"

Before Wes could respond, the jogger from behind the girl stepped in, a bright smile on his face. "Because he's the one who saved you from those thugs!" The jogger proclaimed. "Wish you could've seen it, he and his pokemon handled them like it was nothing!"

The auburn-haired girl looked back at her so-called 'hero', who was currently picking himself off the ground, the umbreon beside him glaring back at her dangerously. "So you're the gallant prince sent to rescue me?" She asked sarcastically, chuckling. "You don't look like much."

Wes sighed, already the calming peace of Phenac City had been shattered by one ungrateful, blue-eyed girl. "I'll take that as a thanks for saving you," He eyed her injuries, nodding his head at her bloody lip. "If it wasn't for me you'd look worse than you already do."

The young woman's eyes widened in surprise, hand rushing up to her lip and wiping at the blood. She stared at it curiously, as if she wasn't aware of the sore feeling in her bottom lip. Seeing Wes's knowing smirk when she looked back up, she clenched her jaw, eyes darkening. "And this is coming from the guy who got _kicked _in the _jaw _by said girl."

Before Wes could respond with his own dismissive comment, the jogger cut him off again. "Hey, hey! Let's not fight, alright?" He stepped closer to the girl, examining her lip and cuts. "What's your name?"

The girl blinked in surprise, shooting one last glare at Wes before smiling appreciatively at the jogger. "It's Rui."

The jogger smiled. "Kyle," He introduced himself. "Rui, you're top priority right now should be getting to the Pokemon Center and letting one of the nurses clean you up." He turned her to the left, pointing at a big white building over next to the city's left wall. "It's right over there. Now Laura and I have somewhere to go, so we'll be seeing you around, alright? If you need anyone, go to the mayor or our Gym Leader, Justy- he was the guy with the gligar."

Rui nodded, bidding the kind man goodbye before he and the woman dressed in pink walked away, leaving Rui with Wes.

Rui stared sheepishly over her soldier, watching Wes who was dusting the dirt off his coat, eyes looking at anything but her. Rui walked cautiously over to him, taking note in how his shoulders tensed and his eyes froze on the ground. She didn't miss the quite, warning growls of his umbreon, either.

She stuck a small hand out, offering a small smile even though Wes didn't see. "Look, I'm sorry for snapping at you and for kicking you like I did," She apologized quietly, Wes's golden eyes now trained on her outstretched hand. "I'm hoping we can put that behind us and start over." She wiggled her hand in front of him in an attempt to get him to shake it. "My name's Rui."

An awkward silence passed for about five seconds after before Wes grasped Rui's small hand with his rough, larger one. He met her eyes, noting how he was much taller than her, almost a whole foot. "Wes."

Rui nodded, shaking his hand in one simple motion before releasing it, pointing behind her at the Pokemon Center with her thumb. "Why don't you come with me?" She asked, biting her lip to hold back a laugh. "You might want to put some ice on that bruise forming on your jaw."

Wes grumbled, the laugh Rui had been holding coming out in a light-hearted tone. She began walking towards the white building ahead, hearing the heavy sound of Wes's footsteps behind her.

"Also, I'll need to use a phone and call my grandparents," Rui said over her shoulder, "It might do them good to know where I am and that I'm alright."

oOoOo

After a visit with the nurses, Wes and Rui now stood outside the Pokemon Center, Wes with a pack of ice on his jaw and Rui with no more blood on her lips. The latter of the pair was inside a telephone booth- using money she had borrowed from Wes to use it- having a small arguement over the phone with her grandfather.

"But I'm fine now!" Rui complained to the phone, a small pout on her lips. Wes smiled lightly from his position outside the booth, shaking his head. Annoying as she was, the girl was funny in her own weird way, and he was beginning to like her more.

There was a pause of silence as the person on the other end of the line said something back to Rui, to which she rolled her eyes angrily. "Grandfather, it won't happen again, I swear." Another pause. "I'm only in Phenac City, I'm not that far away!"

Wes shook his head, vaguely remembering how Rui had forgotten to ask where she was until asking a nurse at the center, surprised she had ended up so far away from her hometown: Agate Village.

"But I just got out of the house!" Rui proclaimed, placing her free hand on her hip. "You can't just force me to come back and keep me cooped up for another five years!" There was another long pause, Rui sighing resentfully before speaking again. "Alright, fine. I'll be back soon."

The auburn-haired girl gently put the phone back in place, taking a deep breath before turning and exiting the phone booth. She immediately met Wes's golden gaze, surprised that he was still there, waiting for her. He raised a single brow inquisitively, as if asking what had happened.

Rui exhaled, shaking her head slowly. "My grandfather has ordered me to come back home to Agate," She explained, "He says I'm not cut out for this 'being on my own' thing." She slumped against the outside of the phone booth, peeking through her bangs at the ground below. "He and my grandmother have always been so protective of me since my parents died, like I'll end up the same way." She peeked at Wes behind her bangs, sad blue eyes staring softly at him. "They don't think I can take care of myself. It's almost like they don't believe in me."

Rui found interest in the ground again, kicking the heel of her boot against the ground in an untuned rhythm.

Wes frowned, sympathizing with the girl, remembering how the guys back at Snagem had treated him. He was the youngest and small one, and for that reason only they liked to pick on him.

"I know how it feels," Wes reassured her. "I've always had people looking down on me because I was younger than they were and had never been out on my own. I made too many mistakes and for that I was judged as the weak one. But I'm set to prove them wrong, to show them that I can take care of myself."

Rui looked up at Wes, eyebrows raised curiously as he continued. "You don't need to just give in to your grandfather. I know it's not my business cutting into your family situation, but I think you should prove him wrong and show that you can take care of yourself. I believe you can do that."

The blue-eyed young woman smiled, laughing quietly. "Thanks, Wes," She said, grateful. "We only just met and barely even know each other and it was nice to hear you say that, even if it was a bit of a shock coming from you."

Wes smirked, nodding his head as if saying 'you're welcome'.

Rui suddenly tensed her shoulders, looking below Wes's eyes as she cleared her throat. "I hope I'm not imposing by asking this but, could you go with me one place else?" She asked. "I need to see the mayor of this town, I need to ask him something."

Wes thought about it for a moment. Sure, he did need to move on and find someplace else to go, find what his purpose was with himself and the stolen Snag Machine currently resting on his left arm, but he found himself not wanting to leave the woman who he had not only an hour ago rescued from two thugs.

Wes nodded. "Alright."

The two exchanged smiles, Rui thanking him once before the two set off again. "I received directions from one of the nurses before we left, it's only up these stairs." She explained.

Wes nodded, not speaking a word. He looked over his shoulder, to where his two loyal pokemon walked behind him. They were both being oddly quiet, both staring at the girl to Wes's left. Cyrus was staring at her in wonder, as if excited to meet someone new while Amber was watching her with a suspicious, sharp eye, clearly not fully trusting the girl yet.

"Hey, Wes," Rui's voice snapped Wes out of his trance, looking over at her questioning face. "When you were fighting those two guys, did you see a suspicious pokemon?"

Wes laughed. "If you're talking about that lousy whismur they used."

Rui's face fell. "You didn't battle the other guy? The one with the red sunglasses?"

Wes shook his head, remembering how the guy with red sunglasses- Trudly- had stood watch over the sack Rui had been in instead of battling with him. "I just battled the other guy."

"Oh," Rui said, clearly disappointed.

Wes frowned, trying to think of some way to cheer the girl up without making it awkward, when it happened.

"I wasn't going to say anything in front of any of the nurses," Rui began, keeping her eyes ahead of her as Wes's stared into the side of her head. "But I know that's not some flashy accessory on your arm, there's something more to it and I'm going to find out what."

Golden eyes widened, the young man almost stopping in his shock. Rui had noticed more than anyone already, but then again it was stupid to put a stolen machine meant to steal pokemon on your arm in plain sight.

As he followed Rui up the stairs that led to the Mayor's house, he wondered just who this girl really was. She didn't know about Team Snagem, did she? Wes sighed inwardly, he would never get to her to admit why she had asked him that, because like mentioned earlier, they had just met. The only real way to know her was to break down her walls and maybe even make a friend in the girl who claimed to see strange pokemon.

**oOoOo**

**Well that ending sucked. Not entirely thrilled with this chapter, and if you can't tell I changed A LOT in this from what really happened in the game. Rui finally appears, and of course I've changed her character a bit from the happy-happy one who can only tell you who the shadow pokemon are. And I always thought her "you're my gallant prince" comment was humorous, so it was used jokingly here. Only one whismur, because there is a huge lack of SINGLE battles in Colosseum. Also, a police officer was added at the beginning for the sake of actually having _someone_ run after Trudly and Folly instead of staring at them. And Rui gets to kick Wes, because it was a fun idea that came to mind. This chapter has been split in two, because it would've been a lot longer if I had added in the second half. Have a good day and please review!**


	4. Seeking Answers

Back when Wes first started with Team Snagem, back before he was even ten years old, he always wondered on who his partner would be if he ever had one. Hopefully nothing like his watchers, Wakin, Biden, and Agrev, Gonzap's top three. They were mean, pushing him around when he did something wrong and glaring when he did right and received Gonzap's praise.

By the time he was eight he already had his imaginary partner picked out: a strong guy who could hold his own, he would be smart and always making the best plans for snagging. He would be like the brother Wes never had. And now, ten years later, he did have what you could call a 'traveling partner'.

He would have never guess it would be someone like Rui.

The girl who had kicked him in the jaw and called him out after he let his naive self feel sympathetic for her. Oh well, atleast she seemed smart.

With a tight frown locked on his face, Wes begrudgingly followed behind the red-head as she repeated the directions to the mayor's house to herself.

"Left turn...after you see the Phenac City Gym..." The girl mumbled to herself, facing the dome-shaped white building that must have been the Phenac City Gym, according to the big letters written on the sign above the door.

Looking to his left, Wes spotted the Mayor's house on what seemed to be the far left of the City. It looked like any other house in the city, but much larger with two guards standing out front.

Wes walked past Rui, patting her on the shoulder as he passed. "Mayor's this way, ginger."

Rui whole face turned the shade of her hair as she stomped after Wes. "Don't call me that!"

Wes stifled a laugh as he walked past, walking over the path to the mayor's house with Rui right behind him.

As they approached the mayor's house, a woman dressed in a simple skirt and collared button-down shirt led a tall man out of the house. She exchanged a few words with him before shaking his hand and disappearing back inside the house.

The last time Wes checked, he was about six feet tall, pretty tall considering how short the Snagem grunts were, but this guy was _huge_. He was surprised Rui wasn't shaking in her boots beside him, he was atleast half her size. He could make any beefy bodyguard look like caterpies.

Also unnatural was his clothing. What was he supposed to be? A confused clown? Covering him from his neck to his wrists was a tight purple shirt, whether to show off his muscles or to suffocate himself, Wes didn't know. He wore an odd magenta skirt-like clothing over dark pants, and his gray hair reached the small of his back, waving in the wind behind him.

He walked a few steps forward, most likely to turn in the exit of the town's walls right next to the mayor's house, but stopped once he caught sight of Wes and Rui. His austere red eyes stared down at them, like burning holes in the back of their heads, a small smile cracking on his face.

His red eyes moved from them to Amber and Cyrus, the two evolutions' hair sticking up on the back of their neck at the sight of this guy.

"A traveling trainer, are you?" The man inquired in a deep voice, training his eyes on Wes again. "Your pokemon look very strong, I like what I see. Very interesting." He stole a quick glance a Rui, nodding at her before turning towards the exit. He looked over his shoulder one last time at Wes, the smile now gone on his face. "I have a feeling we may see each other again."

And just like that, the man dissapeared out of the exit, leaving Wes to stare in the space he had just left, unsure of what to feel.

Rui raised a single brow, shaking her head. "Well that was weird," She said, chuckling. "You don't see someone like that where I live. Come on, let's go see the mayor so I can get out of this town."

Rui walked forward and knocked firmly on the door twice. In a matter of seconds the door swung open, revealing the mayor's assistant, who had just saw the strange man out minutes ago.

"Hello!" She greeted cheerily, a smile glued to her face. "How may I help you?"

"We wish to speak with the mayor about something," Rui answered, "if that would be alright."

"Alright, hold on just a moment, please!" She said, her smiling face disappearing behind the door. Only a few seconds passed before she reappeared. "Alright, you may come in now, but I ask that you leave your pokemon outside."

Amber and Cyrus frowned, but complied, accepting their misused pokeballs.

The formal lady led the two in, shutting the door behind them and walking in front of the desk to the right of the room.

"Here are your visitors, Mayor, sir," The lady informed him.

"Thank you, Paige," The mayor nodded to her before turning his kind, brown eyes to Wes and Rui. "Please have a seat," He instructed them, beefy hand pointing at the two chairs on the other side of his desk.

As Wes and Rui took their seats, they got a better look at the mayor. He took on the appearance of a short, fat man with a balding head, grey hairs only growing on the sides of his eyes and in the form of a thick mustache and eyebrows. Small spectacles framed his coffee colored eyes. He wore a gray business shirt and red tie, with a brown coat adorning a light pink collar and cuffs. His pants were a dark blue and his shoes an inky black.

The mayor shook both of their hands, introducing himself as "Es Cade, Mayor of Phenac City." He placed his chin atop his folded hands, a soft smile on his face. "How may I help you two?"

Rui stole a glance a Wes, receiving a reassuring nod from him before turning to Es Cade. "Well, sir-" sShe paused, awkwardly clearing out her throat, "-I was wondering if there had been any, uh...reports, lately, on any strange Pokemon in Phenac City."

Es Cade frowned, looking down at his desk in thought. "Hm...I don't believe so," He said. "I'm sorry, Miss."

"Are you sure?" Rui egged on, eyebrows furrowed. "Not a pokemon with a strange, black aura around it? One that attacks people, even?" She leaned forward in her seat, anticipating any news the mayor could offer her.

"A pokemon that attacks people, with a black aura surrounding it?" The mayor questioned, his eyes widening. "Now, if that were true, that would be truly frightening. However, it's a little hard to believe."

Rui's mouth dropped a little, a crease in her brow. She was desperate for the mayor to believe her, she hadn't faked what she saw! "B-but...i-it's true, sir!" She sputtered. "Because I saw what others didn't, I was made the prisoner of some frightening men until just a little while ago!"

"Hmm...I see..." Es Cade said, "I understand. I will order an investigation at once."

Rui couldn't help the relieved sigh that escaped her lips, a grateful smile plastered on her face. "You will? Thank you so much, Mr. Mayor!"

Es Cade shook his head, chuckling softly. "Oh, there is no need for thanks, my dear. We mustn't allow thugs to do as they wish. Especially thugs that endanger a pretty young lady like you!"

Rui blushed at his comment, happy that he was going through with this for her.

"I'll ask that you give me a little time on this matter," Es Cade informed her, "but I assure you we will find some very useful information for you."

Rui nodded. "Thank you, Mr. Mayor!"

The old man grinned back, his eyes flashing to the choker necklace the young girl wore. "What a lovely necklace you have there," He praised.

Rui's eyes drifted down to her necklace, a finger unconciously reaching up to stroke the crescent moon pendant. "Oh...thank you. I've had it for as long as I can remember."

Es Cade nodded before turning to Wes, who hadn't said a single word during the whole 'meeting'. "My assistant informed me of your two pokemon," He said. "You msut be a trainer. If so, I urge you to visit our city's Pokemon Stadium. I believe the sign up booth is still open for today."

Stadium, huh? Battling sounds like a good thing right now

. "Thank you, sir," Wes said.

Rui thanked the mayor one last time for his help before dragging Wes out the door, where he released Amber and Cyrus from their pokeballs.

As soon as the dark and psychic types were released, they both seemed to recognize something, holding their nose up and searching for a scent. Wes stared curiously at his pokemon, their ears perking up and heads turning to the sides, growling at whatever they were sensing.

Before he had time to wonder what for he was taken by the arm and slammed against the Phenac City wall, a numbing pain erupting from the back of his head.

"Hey!" He heard Rui shout, his mind a daze from his head shot. He could feel something hitting his face, a horrible odor filling his nostrils.

Cracking two pained, golden eyes open, he stared into the slanted green eyes of Gonzap's second in command: Wakin.

Wakin snickered, the horrible odor Wes was smelling turning out to be a case of bad breath. "Surprised to see me, Wessie?" Wakin taunted, right arm tightening around Wes's left, where the snag machine lay. "Haven't seen you since the day you decided to turn your back on us and become a traitor. Remember?"

Wes growled, eyes darting behind Wakin and finding his ever present partners: Agrev and Biden. Biden's brown eyes glared back at Wes and Agrev stood with his face neutral, eyes hidden behinds round sunglasses. "Unfortunately, so." He laughed, but no humor came from it. "How did you find me so quickly. Doesn't seem like an easy task for a bunch of hollow heads like you three."

"Wonder how I found you, huh?" Wakin asked, lips curling back to reveal not so white teeth. "It wasn't so hard. Just had to follow your tracks. Found your bike here and your two mutts are a dead give away. I thought you learned to cover you tracks after so many years with Snagem, kid."

Wes was about to reach back with his right arm and punch Wakin in the face, but someone else did him a favor and sent Wakin tumbling down on his side. Shocked golden eyes found their way to Rui, her fist clenched and blue eyes hardened.

"Alright, who are you people?" She threatened, sending a glare at Biden and Agrev. Wes smirked as they both flinched, both not worried about the girl until now. "What makes you think you can march in here and terrorize someone?"

Wakin chuckled, pushing himself up and facing the red-head, his body hunched over as he endured the pain in his left side. "Don't you know who we are, kid? We're Team Snagem, and your buddy Wes is, too."

"_Was_," Wes corrected, glaring at his former boss.

Wakin shot his ice cold stare back at Wes. "Who do you think you are?! First, you blow up the hideout and _then_ you steal the Snag Machine. You've got _some nerve_, Wes!"

"Wes, what are they talking about?" Rui asked Wes quietly, but Wakin heard her perfectly.

"Ha! Wes wasn't an ordinary member of Team Snagem, girly!" Waking began to explain, "He was a snagger, the best we had. Never once failed at a mission. He was The Boss's favorite up until the point he blew up the Hideout! Didn't you hear about that on the news this morning? It was everywhere!"

Wes knew Rui's answer already. She never heard about the Hideout, because just this morning she had been trapped in a sac on her way to Arcues knows where.

Rui didn't respond, her blue eyes traveling up and down the Snag Machine on Wes's left arm. "So that's it," She whispered, more to herself than Wes. Looking back at Wakin, she spoke louder. "What does it do?"

"The Snag Machine is built for trainers," Agrev spoke up, "when a trainer puts on the Snag Machine, they have the ability to steal any pokemon from their opponent's party while in battle. Ordinary poke balls can be turned into snag balls with a click of a button. You just place the poke ball into the Snag Machine, and it transforms."

Wakin growled after Agrev's speech, slapping his own forehead in annoyance. "Thanks for the lesson, you big doop!" Wakin scolded. "That was supposed to be kept _secret_, you blabbermouth!"

Agrev chuckled nervously, shrugging nonchalantly.

"This is getting us nowhere!" Wakin shouted, hands on his belt, retracting two poke balls from it. "We'll just have to take the Snag Machine by force!'

Wakin released the pokemon within his pokeball, revealing a corphish and koffing.

"Corphish!"

"Koffing!"

Wes's frowned at the koffing, instantly recognizing it as the koffing he had snagged only a few months ago. Pushing his regret aside, he called his two pokemon forth. "Amber, Cyrus!"

The two Eeveelutions were by his side immediately, ready for a battle, especially with Wakin. They never liked the man, which was understandle even without an explanation. Ever since they were both eevees he'd kick them around and shout at them for no reason. Time for payback.

"Cyrus, confusion on koffing!" Wes ordered, knowing a type advantage would be the best way to go. "And Amber, bite corphish!"

"Koffing, dodge! Corphish, counter with vice grip!"

As Amber lunged forward to sink her teeth into the water-type's waiting claws, Cyrus's psychic power stopped Koffing from even _thinking_ about dodging, making him faint and fall onto the group helplessly.

Amber's teeth sunk into the Corphish's left claw at the saw time it's right claw took hold of her leg. Amber's screams of pain were muffled by the Corphish's rough claw.

"Cyrus, help her out!"

Cyrus charged forward, pushing the Corphish away and off his sister.

"Now, pursuit!"

With a dark force enveloping her, Amber rushed forward and lunged onto the Corphish, fatally wounding him and sending him into a faint state.

Wakim hastily returned his koffing and corphish, his pride wounded by yet again being second-best to Gonzap's favorite.

"You win this time, Wes!" He warned. "But don't think you will next time we see you!"

And in a flash, the trio of Snagem's raced off, exiting the city and disappearing into the vast desert land.

Wes unconciously stared after them, not noticing when Rui raised her hand and slapped him. Hard.

"Ow!" Wes winced, clutching his cheek. "Rui! _What was that for_?"

Rui growled, stomping forward and looking up at him, their noses close enough to touch. "You know very well what _that_ was for!" She yelled. "_Team Snagem?_ Really, Wes? You were one of those _crooks_! Do you not even know the things you've done?! How many people you've hurt by stealing their pokemon? For what? _Money?_"

Wes frowned. "You don't know what I've been through," He whispered vehemenetly, pushing her back a bit.

"Oh, enlighten me." Rui snarled, crossing her arms and waiting for an explanation.

"When I was five or six years old Gonzap found me in the woods, starving and alone," Wes began, eyebrows drawn down. "I didn't have any parents, any gaurdians. No one to take care of me. Gonzap took me to one of the old Snagem Hideout's, where he and the others helped raise me and keep me fed. For _thirteen years_ they were the only ones I had, the only people I could call family. Sure, they didn't really love me like family and were always putting me down and I hated it, but Team Snagem is all I knew, and snagging was the only thing I did. When I was eighteen and realized how wrong it was, _realized_ that yes, I was hurting people and even their pokemon by what I was doing, I was torn on what to do! Keep doing something I despised and be with my only real family, or betray them and do what was right, find a new life. So I left them, didn't have anything to do with them anymore. And it was hard. But when I did it, I felt so much better, free from the life I didn't want to live." Wes's voice began to soften, his eyes on his feet. "Now do you understand?"

Rui's face softened, if only a little, and her blue eyes held a touch of sympathy. "I am sorry about your past, but that still doesn't change the fact that you could've left earlier than you did."

"What about you?" Wes retorted, making Rui flinch. "The over-protective granparent story? If they were so _horrible _and strict to you, why didn't you leave earlier? Because they were the only ones you had, the only people supporting you, am I right?"

Rui's jaw was clenched, blue eyes locked with Wes's.

"Take out our caretakers and Team Snagem and you and I are really alike, you know?" Wes pointed out, voice still holding a harsh tone.

Rui looked at her feet, suddenly admiring the unusual pink boots. "I still don't agree with what you've done, but I _can _at least understand the pain of seperation from the people who have cared for so long," She looked up, her blue eyes softer. "For now we'll drop this."

Wes nodded, offering Rui his first, true smile to her that day. "Thank you," He said before awkwardly clearing his throat. "So, since I went to the mayors with you, how about you go with me to the Stadium now?"

Rui beamed, nodding her head. "Sure!"

And both found it strange that they were slowly starting to forget that they were supposed to seperate at the end of the day. The other wasn't the partner they ever expected to have, but they enjoyed each other's company. Two parentless children, lost together in a new world.

**oOoOo**

**Sorry for the long time without an update. I lost track. Not truly fond of this chapter anyway, sorry for it. If there's any suggestions you can give for me to fix it, please tell me. Part of the reason it took so long to update was because I didn't know how to write this one. Also, since I have missed 4 weekly updates now that I've updated this one, I will be updating on scattered days until I can get all 4 of them up, and then I will go back to my Thursday updates. Oh, and just to tell you, the police officer from the last chapter was changed to Justy.**


	5. Black Aura

"So...how long have you had your pokemon?" Rui spoke up, surprising Wes a little. The blue-eyed girl was attempting small talk as they turned past the dome-shaped Pre Gym. Wes vaguely remembered the jogger from earlier saying that Justy, the purple-haired man who had gave chase to Folly and Trudly, was the leader there. He made a mental note to stop by sometime before looking at Amber and Cyrus thoughtfully, both aware they were the subject of the conversation.

"Seven years," he answered, "When I was eleven I found them while on a Snagem mission. They were just eevee pups then. Cyrus was weak and close to dying, and his sister Amber hadn't left his side. I took them back with me and begged Gonzap for days to let me keep them. Eventually he gave in and said I could keep them as long as they were helpful to the mission."

"Hm. They do seem very fond of you," Rui noted, chuckling. "Amber keeps glaring at me, though. You realize that, right?"

Wes laughed, shaking his head. "She's always been very protective of Cyrus and me," he explained, "And you can't blame her, you _have_ already hit me twice today."

Rui chuckled nervously, casting a glance at Amber, the umbreon's red eyes narrowing back at her. The umbreon stifled a laugh as the human girl's eyes widened as she turned away from the dark-type.

"Espi, espeon?" _(You did that for fun, didn't you?) _Cyrus whispered, chuckling lightly.

"Bre!" _(Of course!)_

"Geez...what is it with this place and stairs?" Wes inquired, exasperated. In front of them was a long climb of pavement stairs, leading up to a large building assumed to be the Stadium.

Rui shrugged. "I was never much of a city girl, anyways," she said. "Agate is much better, trust me."

The silver-haired teen shrugged, making his way up the terribly long stairs with Rui and his pokemon in tow. There was a lengthy walk of pavement to the Stadium, a brunette, teenage boy and his jigglypuff sitting on a bench nearby. They were the only other occupants.

Wes and Rui both stared in awe at the Stadium walls, which were completely covered with water. So this explained where all the water was coming from. The water seemed to be pouring out of the concrete ceiling on top of the dome-shaped building, shining prettily under the sun.

"Does Agate have something like _this_?" Wes teased, receiving a huff from the girl next him.

The great double doors of the Phenac City Stadium were already propped open for entrance, the two people and pokemon stepping through onto silver pavement, with walkways reaching over even _more_ water, leading to two doors and the registration counter. In the middle of the pavement was a diamond tile, colored in the Stadium's traditional blue.

Oddly enough, there were only two other people, besides the lady behind the registration booth, in the Stadium. Surely more people would stop by if the Stadium was taking trainers for the battle today?

Wes walked up to the blonde behind the counter, who was boredly fiddling with the collar of her blue-dress shirt. Her dark eyes flickered up at him as he stood in front of her, hands still on the collar as she offered a quick, small smile.

"May I help you?" she politely asked, yet her eyes hid a trace of annoyance.

"Yea is the Stadium accepting trainers or-" Wes left off, indicating the empty Stadium around him.

The blonde raised a brow, looking confused. "No, sir. The Stadium is not open at the moment," she answered, "It will open back up this Saturday."

Wes frowned. But hadn't the mayor said... "Alright, thank you."

Wes turned to leave, Rui frowning beside him. "That's weird," he said, "The mayor tells us to visit the Stadium yet it's not even accepting trainers today."

Rui nodded. "I was just thinking that," she pondered, tapping her chin in though, "Maybe he just forgot?"

"I guess so. Hey, is it just me or does something feel...different about this place?"

Now outside of the Stadium, Wes noticed that the usual bustling Phenac City of water had a strange feeling to it. The boy and his jigglypuff were no longer seated on the bench, and it just seemed quiet. A little _too_ quiet.

"Normally I'd say you're imagining it," Rui murmured, "but something _does_ seem a little different around here. Hm..."

Both eighteen year olds began the climb down the large set of stairs, spotting a brunette girl in pink business clothes below. There was something oddly familiar about her...

Hearing the sound of footsteps behind her, the brunette turned and acknowledged the pair, blue eyes blinking in recognition. "Oh, you two!" she exclaimed, as if relieved to see them. "I'm Laura from earlier, remember?"

Wes and Rui nodded, now remembering her as well. She was the girl with Kyle who they had seen earlier this morning, right after Wes saved Rui from Folly and Trudly.

Laura's friendly smile quickly disappeared behind a mask of fear, the blue eyed girl looking around the quiet city. "A lot of scary men came here and disappeared into the mayor's house," she whispered, as if trying to hide herself from the 'scary men', "I even saw those two creeps that kidnapped you from earlier. Fodlee and Trolly, maybe?"

Rui glared at the mention of her two kidnappers, staring into the distance at the mayor's house. The two crooks would pay for what they did to her, and she _had_ to find that strange pokemon of theirs. It was like nothing she had ever seen before.

"Thank you, Laura," Rui quickly told the girl, grabbing Wes's machine-free right arm, "We'll go check it out."

The red-headed girl drug her partner along with her towards the mayor's house, listening to her mumble indecent things about her two kindappers, numbers one and two on her hit list.

Wes managed to wiggle his arm out of Rui's grasp, falling in step beside her. He was curious to know what kind of 'scary men' had arrived and besides, he wasn't going to let Rui waltz in there all by herself.

As they neared the mayor's house, they heard the faint echoes of...music?

Rui looked at Wes, honestly confused as they walked a little closer to the door of the house, the sounds becoming more clear. There was no doubt about it, someone was playing some kind of freaky elevator music in the mayor's house.

"Maybe the mayor has some scary-looking friends?" Rui asked, hand hesitant to reach for the doorknob and open it herself. What if they were just friends and Wes and Rui just barged in and put themselves in another awkward situation?

Before Wes could answer, the music abruptly stopped and the sounded of yelling filled the air.

"_You lost her_!?" a voice boomed, furious.

A nervous chuckled was heard, followed by a very familiar voice. "Well, you see, she was actually _stolen_ from-"

"_Who_ took her?" the other person questioned the other, who was obviously Folly judging from his voice.

At this time, realizing this _wasn't _a formal occasion, Rui pushed open the door and walked in with Wes and his pokemon following right behind her.

The mayor was nowhere to be seen, his house in a mess and six strange looking people inside. Against the left side of the wall, standing like statues, were three men dressed from head to toe in green, blue, and red suits, respectively. Directly in front of Wes and Rui was a dark-skinned man with a great stature, wearing a bright yellow dance suit with stars adorning it around the edges. He actually looked only a little taller than Wes, most of his height going to a great big afro on his head colored like a primary poke ball, half red on one side and white on the other. In front of him stood the recognizable Folly and Trudly, both intimidated by the man in front of them.

Folly and Trudly both saw Wes and Rui upon entrance, Folly pointing a shaking finger at Wes, eyes obviously glared behind his sunglasses. "Master Miror B., sir!" he addressed the yellow-suited man, "T-that's him! That's the one who took the girl from us, a-and she's right there beside him!"

The afro-man, named Miror B., spun on his heels swiftly. Oh, so this is where Trudly and Folly got their sunglasses from: Miror B. had a larger, tackier pair with purple shades and stars glittering the sides. A white, toothy smile crept up on the man's face as he stared down at Wes and Rui, laughing.

"Oh, you pathetic boys," Miror B. scolded, laughing as he shook his head at his subordinates. It was hard to believe he was the man who had been yelling earlier, his voice carrying an odd, high-pitched tone for a man. "You mean to tell me you were bested by this _darling_ infants?"

Trudly and Folly nodded, humiliated at their master's scolds. Wes and Rui were also a bit humiliated at being calld 'darling infants'.

"Darling, did you say your name was Wes or something?" the man drawled, flashing his smile at the silver-haired boy.

Wes frowned. "I never told you my name."

Miror B. paused, his smiled faltering, if only a little. "Ah..." he murmered, "Oh, none the matter. I don't like to say it, but we're not a liberty at keeping your lady friend at liberty...yes," behind the sunglasses, his eyes flickered to Rui, a shiver running down her spine from the cold stare hidden behind the shades. "That sweet young thing, she can see what you and I ordinary people shouldn't see. That just will not do for what we're planning to do. If you don't enjoy pain, you can avoide it by keeping your nose out of places it _needn't_ be!" he snapped, turning and facing his two subjects. "Boys! Oh, boys!"

The two straightened up, saluting Miror B. like he was a general in war.

"Can I trust you to take care of this _this _time?" he inquired, hinting a severe punishment if they did not follow through with his orders.

"Sir, yes sir!"

The three other peons gathered up near Miror B., who handed a pokeball to Folly. "I'll even loan you one of my lovely lotads to help you. I will be making my return to Pyrite, now, and I expect you to capture the girl and bring her to me. Do hear me out, I will _not _accept failure again."

Folly and Trudly gulped, nodding slowly.

Miror B. nodded. "Good."

With two peons on his side and one behind him, Miror B. made his leave, a proud smile on his face as he exited the mayor's home.

Folly growled, pointing an accusing finger at Wes. "You, you've gotten us in trouble!" he yelled. "You may think you caught me off guard the first time, but don't think I'll let you get away with it this time!"

Folly released his whismur and the borrowed pokemon, a lotad, from their pokeballs. "I won't lose this time," Folly said, although it sounded as if he was trying to reassure himself more than Wes.

Amber and Cyrus, being Wes's only two pokemon, stood ground in front of Wes, paws moving for better purchase on the floor as they faced their opponents. Cyrus was across from the whismur, who had no trouble recognizing the espeon.

"Espi!" _(Remember me?) _Cyrus taunted.

The whismur shivered uncomfortably, unsure about this battle.

"Lotad, mega drain and Whismur, pound!" Folly ordered before Wes could make a move, desperate to _at least _let his pokemon attack this time.

"Dodge, then use helping hand and hidden power!" Wes called.

Amber and Cyrus, ever the agile pair, quickly dodged the unmatched lotad and whismur, going to stand beside each other in the center of the battle field. Closing his eyes, Cyrus sent a psychic wave of power to his sister, his red jewel glowing brightly on his forehead. Amber's rings surged with energy before she sent a strong force at both the whismur and lotad, hitting them both powerfully.

"Nice hit!" Wes complimented, smiling proudly at his eeveelution counterparts.

Folly wasn't so happy, jaw agape at the sight of his now fainted pokemon. Grumbling, he returned them to their respective pokeballs, ashamed of himself. "Tripped up again..."

Wes shot Trudly a smug smile, receiving a regretful laugh in turn from Folly's partner. "You may have beaten Folly, but you've still got to get past me, buddy!"

Trudly reached for two pokeballs on his belt, Wes's heart speeding up. Rui had said Trudly had the strange pokemon, and Wes was curious to see what she meant by it.

With a flash of light, Trudly sent out a duskull and spinirak, both looking eager for battle. While they were more worthy opponents than what Wes had seen so far, nothing looked overly special about them. He looked over his shoulder at Rui, who stood a safe distance from the battle, receiving a shrug from her in response.

Oh well, at least he'd get to humiliate the both of them this time.

While duskull and spinirak looked possible to beat, Trudly had the type advantage. Amber's dark type attacks would be useful against the duskull, but ghost-type moves had a stronger affect on psychic-types like Cryus. Spinirak even had a type advantage over _both_ Amber and Cyrus.

"Espi, Espeon..." (_I'm at the greatest disadvantage here...)_ Cyrus noted nervously.

"Umbre, umbreon..." (_I've got your back, Brother.) _Amber assured her brother.

"Leech life, and shadow sneak!" Trudly commanded.

"Dodge!" Wes ordered, but his pokemon, quite a bit of energy lost from their attacks in the previous battle, weren't fast enough to dodge.

Shadow sneak only barely touched Cyrus, but it was enough to make the sun pokemon fall to the ground. Leech life had hit Amber, but the dark-type was still standing, the health draining move not yet taking it's full toll.

Wes decided to go for spinirak first, since she had the better advantage.

"Use return and hidden power on spinirak!" he told Amber and Cyrus.

"Duskull!" Trudly called.

The dark-type tried to help his partner but was too late, the bug-type was attacked from both sides, taking a large blow from the two eeveelutions.

She fainted from the power, returning to her pokeball and leaving her partner to fend for himself.

Trudly growled. "Will-o-wisp, Duskull!"

"Dodge and try to hit him with bite and return!"

Duskull shot small balls of fire at the black and lavender blurs of Cyrus and Amber as they dodged and advanced towards him. He floated backwards as he shot the fireballs in an attempt to put a distance between himself and his opponents.

Cyrus started his attack, an unseen forcing hitting duskull from the sides and stopping him, if only for a moment, from throwing fire at his opponents. This gave Amber an opening as she rushed forward and sunk her teeth into the requiem pokemon's back, earning a yelp of pain from the ghost pokemon, causing him to fall to the ground and faint.

Trudly returned his second pokemon, eyes locked on the ground and face hidden from view. Wes, believing it was all over, smiled smugly at the two.

"Is that all you've got?" the Snagem traitor taunted, "I thought you were supposed to 'take the girl back without fail'?"

To Wes's surprise, however, Trudly only chuckled darkly in response. "Don't get your hopes up, Snagem," the man warned, a poke ball suddenly in his hand, "I still have one pokemon left."

Clicking the button on the poke ball, Trudly released a white blur that quickly transformed into a bulky, beige-colored pokemon with squinted eyes and black-gloved hands, adorning red circles on it's cheeks and a black chest area.

"Uh, Wes!" Rui squeaked, frozen at what she saw.

"Huh?" Wes looked at the red-headed girl, her face paled as she stared at the pokemon.

"T-that's it!" she jabbed a finger in the direction of the still beige pokemon. "The pokemon with the black aura!"

What?! Wes faced Makuhita, stunned. But, he didn't look any different from Duskull or Spinarak...

"Snagem, meet Makuhita." Trudly introduced, wearing the smug smile this time. Wes's golden eyes were trained on the short fighting-type, who glared up at him with his fists clenched.

Wes, still shocked at what he was hearing, payed no heed to the Makuhita as it suddenly rushed forward, fist jabbed out to attack until-

The Makuhita's target suddenly moved away from him, the pokemon's dark fist crashing into the wall instead, cracking the smooth surface with ease.

The fighting-type had felt it with his feet, in the air around him. The girl had pulled his target out of the way, just in the nick of time.

Rui released Wes's arm from her grasp, releasing a sigh of relief before glaring at the boy. "Pay attention next time!" she growled, "This pokemon _is not_ afraid to attack a human!"

But Wes could still only stare on in confusion. What black aura? He saw nothing but a wrathful makuhita. What was she talking about?

"...she can see what you and I ordinary people shouldn't see..."

Miror B.'s voice reminded him. What kind of rare talent _did _Rui possess?

Shrugging the matter off, he faced the more important one, the strangely enraged makuhita only seperated from Wes becuase of his now guarding espeon and umbreon.

"Espi, espeon? Espeon!" (_Hey, what's your deal? He's the good guy!) _Cyrus growled, stepping defensively in front of his sister and trainer.

"Maku...Makuhita!" (_All humans...must pay!) _the angered pokemon cried.

"Your espeon and umbreon are no match for my Shad-" a slap on the back of the head from Folly stopped Trudly, who chuckled nervously before continuing. "This is where you lose, Snagem! Makuhita, shadow rush!"

Shadow rush?!

"D-dodge, quick!" Wes ordered shakily, afraid of what could happen to his pokemon. The so-called 'shadow rush' never came, though, shocking Wes. The only thing Makuhita even _did _was throw a punch at Amber, even though she was too far away to hit.

"He almost got Amber!" Rui cried, earning a stunned look from Wes.

"But...he didn't _do_ anything!" Wes complained, waving his hands in the air around the makuhita.

Trudly blinked at Rui in shock. "Y-you mean...you can see _that_ too? Oh, nevermind that! Shadow rush again, Makuhita!"

"Dodge and use bite and confusion!" Wes ordered, desperate to keep his pokemon away from whatever this 'shadow rush' was.

Watching his pokemon dodge the attack again, he guessed, he felt Rui tug on his arm again. "Wes. I have an idea, I don't approve of it, but I think you have to do it," Rui said, intriguing the silver-haired boy.

"Capture the makuhita," Rui told him, "there's something not right about it and if they're using it for bad intentions, then we _should_ take it from them. Do you have a poke ball?"

Keeping his eyes on the battle, he questioned: "Are you sure about that?"

He took a deep breath. Would he have to experience his ex-job again? Stealing pokemon from people? Then again, Trudly and Folly weren't innocent people who would act as if they'd _miss_ Makuhita.

"Positive," came Rui's whisper.

Wes nodded, reaching for an extra poke ball he had left over from a Snagem mission. He was putting his full trust into Rui, even if it meant going back on what he said he would never do again. It was for good intentions this time.

At least, that's what he was forcing himself to believe.

Sliding the poke ball into the slot, he clicked a button on the handle of the snagem machine, a small _Click!_ signifying that the snag ball was ready.

It's now or never

, Wes thought as he saw an opening, taking a deep breath before throwing his snag ball at the makuhita.

"What?!" Trudly cried as Makuhita dissapeared inside the snag ball.

One click.

Wes felt guilty as the surge of excitement rushed through him. Just like he always felt as he was preparing to snag a pokemon.

Two clicks.

He tried to push the feeling away. He wasn't a Snagem anymore. No longer a theif who felt guilt the nights after a mission.

Three clicks.

One, two, three clicks signifying that Makuhita was successfully snagged, the pokemon now under Wes's care.

A moment of silence passed by, Amber picking up the snag ball in her mouth, by habit, and carrying it over to Wes.

"Y-you...you _stole_ my Shadow Pokemon?!" Trudly blurted out, revealing the name of the pokemon. Folly slapped his forehead, for both their battles lost _and _the loss of their shadow.

"Shadow...Pokemon?" Rui inquired.

"Oh man...what're we going to do..." Folly groaned, "Miror B.'s going to _kill_ us!"

"What do we _do_?" Trudly spat, "We _run_!"

The two sprinted, running past Wes and Rui and rushing out the door. They didn't follow. They had their greatest weapon, and Folly and Trudly were probably too scared to run back to Miror B. anyways.

Wes, previously staring off into space, was brought back into reality as Amber nudged the snag ball against the palm of his right hand, urging him to take it.

Wes took the ball gingerly into his hand, staring at it with a neutral expression.

"That pokemon, while obviously enraged, looked to be in incredible pain," Rui explained, placing a small hand on Wes's shoulder. "You did the right thing, you know? You're not a bad person, what you did was a good thing. Now you can help that makuhita, and I believe you will."

Wes nodded, placing the pokeball on the clip next to Cyrus's empty one. "Maybe we should go check the town out, see if any of them are still left." Secretly, he hoped their wasn't. He didn't think he could stomach snagging another pokemon, even if it _was_ for the pokemon's good. He would feel like a hypocrite. A hypocrite who had told his bosses that snagging was wrong and then turning around and starting all over with it again.

Rui hummed in agreement, looking back at the mayor's messy home. "The mayor's obviously not here, hopefully he's somewhere safe," she noted.

Wes agreed, golden eyes flashing to his two injured pokemon. "I should probably take Amber and Cyrus to the Center, three back-to-back battles like that really took it's toll on them."

"Then let's go," Rui motioned, offering the silver-haired boy a quick smile before walking out of the door before her.

Wes looked down at the new pokeball clipped onto his belt, where the 'Shadow Pokemon' was kept. What was it that made it so different from ordinary pokemon? How many could there be out there, besides Makuhita?

Wes sighed, following behind Rui with a tight frown on his face. He would talk about it with Rui once they got to the Pokemon Center.

**oOoOo**

**Kuzahh! Another one! Folly and Trudly are back, with the appearances of Miror B. and the first Shadow Pokemon: Makuhita. Woo! I decided since the aura of the Shadow Pokemon is the same color as their Shadow-type moves, that only Rui could see their attacks as well. Should I change that or is it OK? By the way, this chapter was a lot longer but I had to split it in two because I felt it was too much. The latter portion of this chapter will become Chapter 6, which I will post tomorrow, so this chapter can get it's reviews, too. Oh, and I read on bulbapedia that umbreon is in a lot of the anime (which I don't watch), but has never been seen using a dark-type move, and it was the first pokemon to be an only dark-type! Weird. Also, I know I have the events all in different orders from the games, so sorry if it confused anyone.**

**Anyways, have a good day, and please review! Oh, and thanks for all the story favorites/watches/reviews, this story is only 5 chapters in and already my most popular even with 14 reviews (:**


	6. Closed Doors

Cipher Peon Rosso was already having a bad day as it was. Now he was forced to sit and stand guard in front of one of Phenac City's only three exits, Bluno and Verde guarding the other two. It was hot and itchy under his thick red suit, and he was just ready to get the day over with.

What was taking Folly and Trudly _so_ _long_?

Rosso rocked on the heels of his feet, hands clasped behind his back as he stared impatiently through his helmet shades at the mayor's door. They had been in there for a long time. Was there a chance that they had lost? No, not possible. The blue-coated guy, even though a strong trainer, couldn't beat the Shadow, their secret weapon.

Rosso jumped as the door to the mayor's house slammed open, Trudly and Folly hastily exiting. Rosso straightened his back, waiting for a command from his next superiors.

The red-clothed peon was stunned as Trudly and Folly _instead_ ran right past him, running out into the vast wasteland of desert.

Rosso spun on his heel, watching their retreating backs with wide eyes. "H-hey! Where are you going?!"

"It's in your hands now, Red Riding Hood!" Trudly called back, not slowing down one bit.

Rosso groaned. Great, now his fate and that of those two idiots lied in _his_ hands.

The mayor's door burst open again, this time the red-headed girl and guy with the blue coat walking out. Rosso grimaced, determined not to turn out like Trudly and Folly.

To Rosso's surprise Wes and Rui didn't even acknowledge him, turning in the other direction and preparing to go elsewhere. Maybe he _could_ let them go and let one of his co-peons deal with it, but if _he _faced them and won, it would surely earn a promotion for him.

"Hold it!" Rosso snapped, stopping the pair and the espeon and umbreon behind them, "You won't be going anywhere now, trust me."

Wes and Rui slowly turned, recognition flashing on their faces as they spotted the man in red from earlier.

"So, you beat the Shadow, huh?" Rosso inquired, eyes studying the weak espeon and umbreon. Good, that would make it easier for him.

Wes nodded, and to Rosso's dismay, patted the new poke ball on his belt. "Took it away from the wrong hands, too," Wes explained, satisfaction seeking in at the enemy's honest confusion. "Now, why don't _you_ tell me exactly what these 'Shadow Pokemon' are?"

Rosso blinked at the teen before releasing a small laugh, pulling a poke ball from his pocket.

"Why, I'll _show_ you!" he exclaimed, the white light from the poke ball striking like lightning on the ground.

Appearing from the light was a slim, half blue half cream-colored pokemon, with bright red eyes and flames projecting from it's forehead and rear. It was a quilava, a fire-type pokemon and the evolved form of cyndaquil.

The little fire-type glared at Wes and Rui, fire in his crimson eyes.

Rui's eyes widened, blinking twice to make sure she was seeing right. "You've _got _to be kidding me!" she groaned, surprising both Wes and Rosso.

"What?" Wes questioned.

"Quilava has a black aura surrounding it," Rui explained, meeting Wes's stare, "It's another Shadow Pokemon!"

Wes grimaced at the fire-type. If there was now _two_ Shadow Pokemon, there was bound to be even more.

"Well, you surely know your Shadows, huh girly?" the peon drawled, "Quilava, shadow rush on the espeon, let's go ahead and take out the weaker one."

It was true, Cyrus had taken more damage than Amber in the last few battles, and it was a miracle he was still standing on all four legs.

"Amber, cover him and use hidden power," Wes instructed his umbreon.

Amber moved in front of her younger brother, sending hidden power at Quilava as soon as he threw a single punch, sending the hidden force that only Rui could see. Wes knew it was coming, prepared for the _Boom!_ that followed the collision of the two powerful moves, shaking the earth below.

Amber and Quiliva both were not fazed from the attack, both only a bit dizzy.

"Is that the best you've got?" Rosso taunted. "Quilava, throw random punches in the air, _and_ throw a random Shadow Punch in there!"

"Quil!"

Well, Wes surely wasn't expecting _that_, especially from someone who was of lower rank then even the witless duo of Folly and Trudly.

Amber kept her eyes on the quilava, patting her left paw on the ground firmly and raising it a few inches before dropping it. Wes recognized the odd signal as one of many both his pokemon used in battle. Amber was asking for help.

"Dodge every punch!" Wes instructed, unsure himself of what to do, "Try to get a bite on him somewhere!"

"Bre!"

Amber charged forward, darting to the side each time Quilava threw a distant punch at her. She had raced her way up to him and behind him without so much as a single bruise, biting him right on his soft belly.

"QUI!" Quilava howled in pain, on instint taking a fist and popping Amber in the side of the head.

Rui gasped, the black aura dancing across her eyes as it made contact with the dark-type's head.

Amber stumbled backwards, struggling to keep upright. Her eyes were getting droopy and she knew she was close to fainting now.

Wes didn't know whether to be upset or relieved. For one, Amber had just taken a hard hit and would be down if only a simply punch hit her. Then there was that Shadow Rush wasn't killing her or anything, just unnaturaly powerful.

With both Amber and Cyrus almost down and being unsure with Makuhita, Wes decided that now would be a good time to take the second Shadow and get to the Pokemon Center quickly.

He inserted his last extra poke ball into the Snag Machine's slot, golden eyes watching Quilava's every move. The Shadow was too focused on Amber right now, crimson eyes full of rage towards the pokemon who had left him with bite marks.

Wes threw the snag ball, enveloping the fire-type inside.

"Hey!" Rosso gasped as his Shadow Pokemon disappeared inside the poke ball. Behind the shade of his helmet, narrowed eyes watched the poke ball as it wiggled back and forth in front of him.

Click!

Before the peon could charge forward, grab the pokeball, and flee, Amber had it in her grasp, carrying it back to Wes and nudging it against his hand. He accepted it more quickly this time, refusing to look at it as he placed it beside Amber's empty poke ball.

"Now," Wes began, golden eyes in slits at the peon, "Tell us about these Shadow Pokemon, or I'll send _both_ of mine out on you."

The peon shivered at the thought of having two fighting machines released on him. So he stood his ground and decided to spill. "Shadow Pokemon are ultimate fighting machines created by the group Cipher," he explained, "They were once regular pokemon, just like your espeon and umbreon. One of the Cipher Admins, Ein, is in charge of creating the Shadow Pokemon, which our other admin, Miror B., is responsible for catching and handing over. Ein undergoes a scientific process that turns these creatures into Shadow Pokemon. He does this by...by artificially closing the door to it's heart."

Wes and Rui blinked, the area outside the Mayor's house becoming uncomfortably silent. Rosso gulped, not knowing if he should flee or not.

"You...you closed the door to their hearts?" Rui asked, her voice barely above a whisper as she blinked at the ground. She slowly found her way looking up at the peon, who was awkwardly staring back. "How could you people do such a thing?!" She roared, furious.

Rosso frowned. "Don't blame me," he scoffed, "I'm just here for the money!" Rosso turned, facing the desert beyond Phenac City's gate. "I will tell you this, though," he said, "This isn't just some _game_. There's something much bigger going on and you won't be able to stop it. Not this time."

The red-coated peon walked out of the city gate, quickly becoming a small speck in the huge desert. Wes and Rui let him go. They had the information they needed from him, and the Shadow Pokemon in safe hands.

Wes turned to look at Rui, meeting her worried blue eyes. He offered a reassuring smile, stepping forward and patting her gently on the shoulder.

"Let's go to the Pokemon Center now," he said, "I should get these four healed."

oOoOo

Rui tapped her fingers impatiently on the desk, an out of tune melody ringing in Wes's ears.

Thump! Da Dump!

The Agate girl had her blue eyes trained on the computer in front of her, reading vigorously.

Date: January 18th, 2013.

Cryptic crimes have made their way across Orre, spreading as far as Agate Village to Pyrite Town. Reports of missing pokemon and white-cloaked goons, but no real finds. Goons are reported to have used pokemon that attacked humans, with unusually great power and stealth. Group is believed to be the ever-growing Cipher, who have commited crimes with similar uses.

Rui sighed, clicking the back button and looking for more reports. They all seemed the same to her: people in white costumes, missing pokemon, unusual human-attacking pokemon. She already knew all of this!

The auburn-haired-girl groaned, tapping her chin with a single finger. Wes, a bit of distance away with the now healed Amber and Cyrus at a lone table, frowned at her before looking around the library, bored.

His eyes landed on the billboard a few feet away from him. Advertisements for Pre-Gym and Phenac City Stadium battles, small restaraunts and hotels, and even the missing pokemon section were displayed on the board.

Wes's eyes scanned over the missing Pokemon board, both out of boredom and curiosity. Would some of his snags from Snagem be on there? He had never been to Phenac City before, so there were none that matched any of his snags, which he found relieving.

One old, faded photograph showcased a girl in pigtails holding the small, pink-sheep pokemon known as Flaafy. The words 'Missing' were printed above the picture, with a high reward for the beloved family pokemon. If Wes didn't steal it, there was a high chance someone else at Snagem _did_.

"Ugh!" Rui groaned, snapping Wes out of his thoughts as he turned his attention towards her. She had her hands locked on her two pigtails, bug-eyed at the screen in front of her. "Everything on here says the exact. Same. Thing."

"I told you you wouldn't find anything on there," Wes said, "You hear a lot at Snagem, with all of us going everywhere, and I've never heard of a group named 'Cipher."

"I know," Rui sighed as she logged off the Pokemon Center computer, walking over and sitting at the table with Wes, "it was worth a shot, though."

Wes chuckled, causing Rui to release a small laugh of her own.

Rui frowned, blue-eyes deep in thought about something. "I've heard of them before..." she began, looking up and meeting Wes's eyes, "Shadow Pokemon. Not under that name, though. I have memories from when I was little of someone talking about things called 'Machine Pokemon', that fit the same description of these Shadow Pokemon. And yet I don't even know why..."

"Does it have anything to do with why only you can see the aura around them?" Wes inquired.

Rui sighed, shaking her head. "No," she replied, "I don't even know why I can. Infact, I didn't even _know_ I could see such things until I took a trip to Pyrite Town, where I saw Makuhita. That's where those creeps kidnapped me, they didn't want me letting their secret out-" she laughed "-that still didn't stop me, though."

Wes raised a brow. "Where's Pyrite Town?"

"Not too far," Rui answered, "It's only a few miles west of here."

Wes nodded, locked on the thought of going to Pyrite Town. If _that's_ where Trudly and Folly were _orginally_, it meant that Miror B., their boss, could be there now.

"You do realize we're going to be together for a long time, right?" Rui's voice asked quietly. Wes's eyes widened as he turned to her, missing her real meaning. Rui's eyes widened as well, her face turning red as she waved her hands frantically in the air around her. "N-No! Not like that, you dummy!" she stutterred. Sighing, she shook her head before regaining her composure. "What I _meant_ was that I am the only one who can see the Shadow Pokemon, and you're the only one with the Snag Machine that can take them. If you're thinking of going to Pyrite and finding more about Cipher, so am I."

"What about your grandparents?" Wes asked.

Rui shook her head. "I'll just call and tell Grandpa my visit will be delayed," She explained, "_maybe_ he'll understand that I'm old enough to do things on my own now."

Wes gave her a reassuring smile, about to respond before a small gasp interrupted him.

"Oh! An espeon and umbreon," A woman pointed out as she walked up to Wes and Rui's table, "it's nice to see them. It reminds me of my son and his eevee."

The woman smiled at Wes. "They look very well taken care of," She commented as she stuck her hand out, "sorry, forgot the introduction. My name is Lily Davis, I live here in Phenac City."

Wes shook her hand back. "I'm Wes, and this is Rui, Cyrus, and Amber," Wes introduced all of them.

Lily flashed one of her bright smiles again. She had a pretty face, with bright green eyes and long brown hair that cascaded down her shoulders. She wore a pink coat and navy blue skirt that went to her knees.

A question suddenly popped itself in Wes's head, as he remembered his shortage on poke balls. "Do you know if they sell poke balls here in Phenac City?" he asked Lily, who quickly shook her head.

"Nope, they said the same thing to my son when he asked," she answered, "they don't sell them because wild pokemon around this desert are very hard to come by. There is this outskirt stand my brother hangs around at, though. He says it's a resatraunt called 'Peak's Diner', and they sell them out there since it's in the Eclo Canyon, where wild pokemon are more common."

Of course Wes remembered Peak's Diner, he had just been there that morning. Then again, there was something else Lily said that intrigued him.

"Your brother," he questioned, "who is he?"

If Lily was a little surprised by the sudden question, she hid it well. "His name is William Berkley, but he goes by Willie," she answered, "have you heard of him?"

Wes nodded. "Of course, saw him there this morning," he said.

Lily smiled. "Well, if you do go back there tell him I said hello," she said, "I have to be going home now, you two have a nice day!"

Wes and Rui thanked Lily, watching as she left.

"I'm out of poke balls," Wes explained to Rui, "if I have to catch anymore Shadow Pokemon, I'll probably need them." Wes turned to face Rui, sticking a hand out to her. "We'll leave for Pyrite Town tomorrow."

Rui grabbed his hand and shook it, oddly reminded of a similar situation this morning. "Alright!"

oOoOo

He drummed his fingers along the wooden oak table, staring boredly out the window with silver locks framing the right side of his face.

Footsteps coming from outside his door made him look up, red eyes now alert as he listened to the echoes of the metal door creaking open, boots clicking on the floor.

"Nascour, sir. Cipher Admin Miror B. has arrived," the voice of Cipher Peon Corey announced to the silver-haired man's back, "shall I let him in?"

Corey flinched as Nascour looked over his shoulder and stared at him with the inhuman red eyes. "Let him in, but take the music box away first," Nascour warned.

Corey nodded firmly, closing the door behind him and leaving to, more than likely, find Miror B. and let him in.

In less than a minute Corey came back with Miror B. in tow, the latter of the two with a huge frown on his face.

"Come on Nascour," Miror B. complained as Corey shut the door behind him, "You'd like it if you listened to it."

"No, I wouldn't," Nascour snapped, "You're here to give me your report, Miror."

Miror B. inwardly groaned, but decided to take the seat across from Nascour to give his report. He knew he would have to tell Nascour about the loss of the girl, and even though it was Trudly and Folly's faults, they were his subordinates and he was responsible for their mistakes.

Nascour growled, tired of the silence the man with the afro was giving him. "The _girl_, Miror B.," he explained, "do you have the _girl_?"

The other man's face paled, passing off a nervous laugh. "Well...you see...Trudly and Folly kind of...lost her."

Nascour slammed his hands on the table, standing up and boring his red eyes into Miror B's frightened ones, holding back the urge to slap the dance-freak in front of him. "_They what?!"_

"Wait, but it was-"

"_Who?!_ Who was it, Miror?" Nascour inquired.

Miror B. could of swore he saw fire burning in Nascour's crimson eyes, but shrugged it off as he decided to look to the left of the man's head.

Miror B. sighed, speaking slowly. "It was _him_."

Nascour stared at him, confused. After a few silent seconds his eyes finally widened, recollecting memories from his past, from this morning.

Oh.

Him

.

**oOoOo**

**Oooooh. Who is this '_him_'? Okay, I'm pretty sure it's obvious so I don't know why I'm acting like that. Hehe. Anyways, there are a lot of hints in this chapter that will come in play for future chapters, so even though it feels like a pointless, boring chapter, it has a lot of foreshadowing. Remember that ;). So sorry this took so long to get here, I said one day but I tried to proofread and then I wanted to rewrite but it was so hard and bleehhh. But I got it now. And did anyone catch the Pokemon XD reference in here? And Willie's just a nickname! Also, this is the end of the first day in Vanishing Shadows. Of course, Wes and Rui need more time to build their starting friendship, so I will add more extra days and events in here to make it more plausible. Thanks for reading! (:**

**Question time! Who do you like better, espeon or umbreon? I personally like espeon better, but umbreon is an awesome pokemon too!**


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